Chapter 8

2 Weeks Later

Jude walked into G Major and nodded at the interns as she made her way to Studio B. She closed the door behind her and picked up her guitar she had left there the night before. She checked the strings and began to strum; hoping lyrics would come to her head. She continued to strum for a few minutes, and stopped as the door opened and Kwest entered the studio.

"Hey." Jude said, greeting him with a smile.

"How's it going?" Kwest asked, nodding at the guitar and taking a seat on her left. Jude sighed in frustration.

"Fine, but the words just aren't coming to me." Jude said a frown on her face.

"Jude Harrison, uninspired? Alert the media, I think this is a first." Kwest joked. Jude scowled and said nothing. She began to play the angry melody again.

"What comes to your mind as you play?" Kwest asked, attempting to help her mental writers block. Jude stopped short.

"Nothing. That's the problem." Jude said, sighing.

"That's because you're trying too hard." A tired voice said. Jude and Kwest turned towards the door and saw a tired looking Tommy leaning against the door jam. A bright smile appeared on Jude's face and she set her guitar aside and launched herself at Tommy; knocking the chair over as she did so. The pair shared a brief hug and Jude stepped back.

"When did you get back?" Jude asked.

"Late afternoon yesterday. I spent the day unpacking and then Georgia called and demanded my presence here." Tommy said, collapsing in a chair next to Kwest. "I've been here since about…9:00 last night…" Tommy trailed off and shook his head. Kwest and Tommy then did a complicated handshake that Jude couldn't follow.

"Can't handle those all-nighters anymore eh Quincy?" Kwest joked. Tommy yawned and shrugged.

"I listened to the tracks last night Jude…" Tommy made a face and Jude nodded in agreement. "I think we should burn it before it gets leaked and start fresh." Jude nodded again. "I noticed a couple inconsistencies in the lyrics; we should probably start there first." Jude sighed and glanced up at the clock. It was only 11:00 in the morning and she suspected it was going to be a long day.

Jude sat down across from Tommy. Kwest snuck out of the room as they began to argue over revisions and bounce ideas off of each other for the melodies. Sometime later, they were interrupted by an excited voice.

"Oh, my god!" EJ exclaimed. Jude and Tommy jumped slightly, but EJ kept on. "I know what would put Jude out there!" She squealed excitedly. "The press would love it…forget the press! The fans would go crazy!"

"EJ!" Jude and Tommy yelled simultaneously.

"What!" EJ snapped, sounding annoyed about being interrupted.

"What are you talking about?"

"A Duet. Jude hasn't done one since Shay." Jude grinned, obviously catching onto EJ's thinking.

"Who?" Tommy asked, looking puzzled.

"Duh! Tommy! You and Jude! It'll be perfect! There will be press releases, music videos, and talk shows…" EJ trailed off. "I hafta tell Georgia!" She said, rushing out of the room. Jude grinned and turned to Tommy. Once she saw him, her grin fell from her face.

"Tommy?" Tommy didn't look up at her. He looked shocked at the prospect of the duet. "Come on, it'll be fun!" Jude said, looking at him.

"She's crazy." Tommy muttered. Jude felt her heart sink.

"What? It's a great idea!" Jude defended. Tommy opened his mouth to comment, but Jude cut him off. "Come on Tommy! I've always wanted to do a duet with you. It'd be great publicity and I know you miss singing. How bad could it be?" Jude asked. Tommy sighed and got out of his chair. He took a few steps away from her and stated in a low voice "I don't know if I want to…"

"Why not?" Jude asked. Tommy sighed and offered no response. "Come on Tommy! You loved performing at the tele-thon. The plus side will also be that the guys won't be involved and you can be the creative genius…" Jude said, hoping to get him to say yes.

"That's just the thing Jude. I do this, and what'll be the new talks? A solo album, Boyz Attack reunion? A secret love affair behind the scenes? It doesn't matter what I do; the image of my teenage days will always follow me."

"So do something different! You did it with frozen" Tommy stiffened and scowled at the mention of his album "you can do it again!" Jude argued. He sighed and said nothing in response.

Georgia and EJ entered the room, both grinning from ear-to-ear.

"I love it! I'm so glad to hear Tom agreed."

"I never said I was going to do it." Tommy said, his voice carrying his annoyance.

"Oh Tom, stop it. We all know you like the idea and you're going to do it." Tommy's gaze darkened. The girls laughed. "I'll have to have you schedule a press release…" Georgia was saying to EJ.

"No." Tommy snapped. Everyone looked at him. "I never agreed to this." Tommy said, glaring at EJ.

"Tom-"

"No Georgia. I have to think about it." Tommy said his voice softer this time. EJ looked like her puppy had died.

"OK, you let us know what you decide." Georgia said, looking disappointed and left the studio, EJ in tow. Tommy sighed and ran a hand through his hair. Jude sat down, looking as disappointed as EJ.

"I'm sorry Jude, but I have to think about this."

"OK." Jude said, and Tommy sighed. He knelt down next to her chair.

"It's not that I don't want to do this. The 18-year-old inside me who wanted a solo-career more than anything is all for this…"

"But…?"

"But the 25-year-old producer isn't so sure it's a good idea." Tommy sighed. "I just need to think it through Jude. I don't want to jump into this and find out half way through I really don't want to. I don't want to disappoint you like that."

"You think I'm not disappointed now?" Tommy hung his head. "I understand Tommy; I really do, but why do you have to be so difficult?" Tommy gave her a small smile and sighed.

"Why don't we take a break?" He suggested. "We need to clear our heads again and I'm sure you're thoughts aren't exactly on target right now." Jude just shrugged and left the studio and Tommy alone. Tommy sighed and got up from his crouched position on the floor. He walked over to the soundboard and laid his hands on it and leaned into it, his head into his chest. He knew he'd give in and do the duet. He knew the press would eat it up and the fans would love it. Not to mention, Jude would love it. But a nagging feeling in the back of his head made him hesitate. Tommy sighed once more. And lifted his head to look out into the recording booth.

He could vividly remember standing behind a similar mic and singing his heart out; pouring out his soul in music for all to bear witness to. He walked away from his friends; all because he wanted a solo album and even that was taken away from him so fast it made his head spin and shattered his world. He didn't want to set himself up for another fall; so he took the safe way out. He couldn't get music out of him. It was in his soul, his blood. It was his reason for getting up in the morning. He took the easy way out. Instead of getting up on his feet and finding another label to sign under, he ran out of the spotlight and began producing. That way, he wouldn't have to feel the pain of his frozen album.

Tommy took a deep breathe and shoved the thoughts of his album out of is mind. You gotta get over it man. He told himself. That was nearly 10 years ago. The door to the studio opened and Kwest stepped tentatively into the room.

"Hey man." Tommy said, not looking away from the glass.

"I heard about EJ's idea." Tommy laughed.

"I'm sure Beijing heard EJ's idea by now."

"Why'd you turn it down?" Kwest asked. Tommy sighed.

"I know Kwest! I know what you're going to say because I've already argued it out. I know I need to do this…if not for myself than for Jude. If I do this…I don't think I can hold back anymore." Kwest sighed.

"You still love her?"

"I know, I know…yes, I'm in love with Jude Harrison. That hasn't ever changed. I know exactly how it's going to look if I do this Kwest. I don't want to ruin her for it."

"You can't keep hiding Tom." Kwest said. Tommy turned his head to look at him, his expression pained. "You're not getting any younger and since when have you cared about what people think? I know you man, and I know you're freaked…hell, you're scared shitless."

"What do you propose I do then?"

"You concur you're fear." Kwest said, simply and laid a hand on Tommy's shoulder.

"I think you're right." Tommy said, giving Kwest a knowing smile. "No more holding back."